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Lyon needs Gourcuff to inspire title challenge


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Updated Mar 31, 2011 1:13 PM ET
Yoann Gourcuff needs to find his form again if Lyon is to get back in the French title race, with games running out and a six-point deficit on leader Lille.
Fourth-place Lyon - which won seven consecutive titles between 2002 and 2008 - travels to Nice on Sunday with 10 games remaining to overtake Rennes, Marseille and Lille.

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Gourcuff's performances have fallen way below the massive expectation generated by his 22 million euros ($27.8 million) move from Bordeaux early into the season.
Some critics question whether he should even be in Claude Puel's team, let alone if he is still a match winner.
For now, he still has the support of his teammates, with defender Pape Diakhate saying Gourcuff will bounce back in time to spark Lyon's title challenge.
"A player can have highs and lows," Diakhate said. "At the moment he's a little off form, but it will come back."
Diakhate thinks Gourcuff has come in for some overly harsh treatment.
"There is a plot against 'Yo' (Gourcuff) that is not worth it," Diakhate told RMC radio. "Sometimes the press are a bit sadomaso(chistic). They have a very good player, they now want to criticize him and put everything on his back."
Gourcuff's price tag, and the fact he is a pale shadow of the player who lit up the league with spectacular goals during Bordeaux's title run two seasons ago, are both working against him now.
"He hasn't asked for what is happening to him. The notoriety he has is not his fault," Diakhate added. "He is not superhuman."
Gourcuff still scores the odd goal for France, like he did against Luxembourg last Friday.
But even the support of France coach Laurent Blanc, his coach when Bordeaux won the title, has failed to revitalize him. A return of two league goals in 22 games this season has done little to silence the doubters.
The theory often offered by Blanc - that Gourcuff's confidence took a huge blow after France's awful World Cup campaign - is also wearing thin seeing as that was now nine months ago.
Diakhate, however, insists Gourcuff can still get back to his best.
"Every day in training he is doing the right things," Diakhate said. "The fact he scored for his country against Luxembourg will do him some good."

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But with Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas running out of patience with Puel's stuttering title bid, the next few weeks will be crucial in determining the future of the coach and his star player.
Meanwhile, Lille hosts Caen on Saturday as it defends a four-point lead over second-place Marseille, which goes to struggling Lens on Sunday.
Rennes is five points behind Lille in third spot, while Paris Saint-Germain is 10 points back in fifth.
Marseille plays for the first time since Brandao joined Brazilian club Cruzeiro on loan, hoping the media frenzy surrounding the striker will dissipate.
Brandao is facing accusations of rape, after an investigating judge filed preliminary charges against him this month and then released him from custody pending further investigation.
Marseille president Jean-Claude Dassier said this week it would be impossible for Brandao to continue playing in France for the remainder of the season, and his long-term future also remains unclear.
PSG's title bid took a huge blow after the 2-1 defeat at Marseille two weeks ago, and veteran goalkeeper Gregory Coupet says failure to beat Lorient on Saturday will hamper PSG's chances of qualifying for the Champions League.
"We have had a very bad month and it is time to pick up points, especially at home," Coupet said. "We have to stay in the race for third place, and for that we have less and less room for mistakes."
In Saturday's other games, it's: Arles-Avignon vs. Monaco; Nancy vs. Bordeaux; Rennes vs. Auxerre; Sochaux vs. Brest; and Toulouse vs. Montpellier.
Sixth-place Saint-Etienne hosts Valenciennes in Sunday's other match
 
Has Dimitar Berbatov lost supremacy battle with Javier Hernández?

The Manchester United striker faces a huge challenge as the Mexican's status rises ever higher in Sir Alex Ferguson's eyes



  • Manchester-Uniteds-Dimata-007.jpg
    Manchester United's Dimatar Berbatov seems more and more out of favour at Old Trafford compared to Javier Hernández. Photograph: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images By now, we are getting used to the smile, the index fingers pointing to the sky, the sense of potential blossoming into something far more serious and rewarding. It was there again when Mexico beat Paraguay in the Oakland Coliseum last weekend: a stooping header, a right-foot finish, two more goals and the adulation of the crowd. Then on to San Diego for a friendly against Venezuela and this time Javier Hernández was unable to score. It felt like the news itself. "Hernández could not find the back of the net," read one match report. All that was missing was the exclamation mark.
    Back in Manchester, Dimitar Berbatov was quietly going about his business, the daily grind of training, preparing for Saturday's game at West Ham, quite possibly wondering whether he is being ushered to the edges in a season that at one point had cast him in the leading role.
    Hernández has played instead of Berbatov in five of Manchester United's past six matches and Sir Alex Ferguson is now talking about the Mexican finishing the season with 25 goals, which does not sound like a man who is planning to use him sparingly over the next two months. So far, Hernández has 16 goals in 34 games (18 starts). In the Premier League he has 10 from 14 shots on target. For Mexico, 14 in 23 caps. Ask Ferguson about the player's development and he will glow with a rare pride. "It's been nothing but acceleration," he said this week of a 22-year-old who, at £6m, has legitimate credentials to be considered the season's outstanding piece of transfer business.
    For Berbatov, it represents a challenging period in what we know can occasionally be an insecure and complex state of mind. The Bulgarian could conceivably return to the team at Upton Park this weekend but, if so, two things will have to be taken into account. One is that Hernández is simply being rested after a hectic fortnight of travelling through different time zones. The second is that there is hard evidence to deduce a clear change in Ferguson's thinking and that Berbatov has dropped to third in the list of United strikers when earlier in the season he had established himself ahead of Wayne Rooney as No1.
    On the face of it, Berbatov is entitled to wonder what he has done wrong, maybe feel a little perplexed, aggrieved even, given that his partnership with Rooney has a better strike rate (a goal every 52 minutes) than Rooney's with Hernández (one every 71 minutes). This has been Berbatov's most productive season for the club by some distance, with 21 goals so far compared to 12 and 14 in the previous two years. He has more league goals than Didier Drogba and Fernando Torres together. He is the first United player to score a hat-trick against Liverpool since 1946 and the first to manage three hat-tricks in a single season since Ruud van Nistelrooy in 2002-03.
    Rooney was asked this week to nominate United's player of the year and instinctively replied: "Berba." Yet there remains the unmistakable sense that Ferguson does not trust him implicitly and that Berbatov's position as the league's leading scorer is slightly deceptive when considering his overall contribution.
    This is not to denigrate Berbatov's improvement from the man whose talent was too often muzzled in his sometimes beguiling, sometimes bewildering first two seasons at Old Trafford, but this is still a player who can perplex. Eleven of Berbatov's goals have come in three matches. In between the three against Liverpool in September and the five against Blackburn Rovers in November it sums up the Berbatov enigma there was a 69-day run when he did not score in 10 games.
    Ferguson has described him as a "genius" this season but he has also publicly expressed dissatisfaction with the disparity between the player's performances home and away. All but four of Berbatov's 20 league goals have been scored at Old Trafford, and a direct correlation can be made with the team's results. The home record is formidable, with a mere two points dropped all season, whereas United have won only four away games.
    His manager can sympathise with the player over his being left out – "It's not been easy, I can tell you," Ferguson says – but the problem for Berbatov is that a trend has developed and it is this: when the heat of the battle is dangerously close to intolerable, Ferguson tends to look elsewhere. Berbatov was not in the team against Chelsea. Nor the league and cup games against Arsenal. He was on the bench when Manchester City came to Old Trafford. Indeed, Berbatov has started only 23 out of 48 "big" games since joining the club – "big" meaning finals and semi-finals, league matches against Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and City, plus the Club World Cup and Champions League knockout ties.
    Then consider the 30-year-old's record in Europe, 18 games and two and a half years since he last scored. Even Bébé and Gabriel Obertan have a fresher recollection of how it feels to score in the Champions League. Somewhere along the line Ferguson appears to have lost a degree of trust in the £30.75m man. In last season's quarter-final against Bayern Munich, with Rooney off the pitch and United needing a goal to stay in the competition, Ferguson preferred to use a winger, Nani, in the centre-forward's role, while the most expensive player in the club's history sat on the bench.
    An argument could be made, of course, that there is a big difference between the Berbatov of now and then, particularly when thinking back to the almost broken body-language – shoulders sagged, head down, hands on hips – in the 0-0 draw at Ewood Park last April that can be identified as Exhibit A in the reasons United lost the league.
    Berbatov's sympathisers can also point out that, unlike Hernández, his value to the team should not be gauged solely on goals. In football, a pass can be every bit as beautiful as a 30-yard shot, and Berbatov has always taken as much joy from playing the killer ball and, using the description Ferguson once gave Eric Cantona, being the modern-day "can-opener".
    Not too much should be read into the fact United are yet to extend a contract that expires in 14 months. The club have a "one-way option" – a clause they often insert when signing players for large transfer fees, dating back to Juan Sebastián Verón – to add another year and there is no reason to believe it will not happen.
    Nonetheless, Hernández's emergence is threatening to have ramifications for Berbatov if we can safely assume that Rooney, perhaps fortuitously, is to remain a mandatory first-team pick. Gary Neville likened Hernández this week to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer but it was not only the players' attributes in the penalty area to which he was referring. Neville noted how Hernández always chases down the opposition goalkeeper and defenders when he does not have the ball. "When you get a player who is willing to work like that, it lifts the whole stadium."
    Ferguson has also used the Solskjaer comparison – there are not too many greater compliments for a striker at Old Trafford – and the manager's eyes sparkled this week when he recollected Hernández's scoring debut against an MLS All-Star side in Houston last summer. After the game Paul Scholes turned to Ferguson, nodded knowingly and registered his approval with one simple sentence: "He'll get us 25 goals." As Ferguson says: "Paul Scholes doesn't say a lot, but he's a fantastic judge."

 

'I'll change my ways,' Mario Balotelli assures Manchester City manager

• Roberto Mancini: 'I think Mario's behaviour will be good'
• Truculent striker is restored to squad for Sunderland game



  • Reuters
  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 April 2011 19.58 BST <li class="history">Article history
    Mario-Balotelli-Mancheste-007.jpg
    Mario Balotelli promised to stay out of trouble in a private meeting with Manchester City's manager, Roberto Mancini. Photograph: Claudio Villa/Getty Images The Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli has promised to change his temperamental behaviour and will return to the squad this weekend after being dropped.
    Roberto Mancini has spoken to Balotelli privately and has been assured his conduct will improve.
    "I think his behaviour will be good," said the manager, who added that some of Balotelli's antics, which are not restricted to the pitch, were exaggerated by the media. "If Mario goes into a restaurant and speaks with a woman, [they write that] there are five women."
    Balotelli has tested Mancini's patience in his first season at the club, picking up two red cards, including one against Dynamo Kiev which played a major part in City's exit from the Europa League.
    He was left out of the City squad as well as the Italy squad for the Euro 2012 qualifier against Slovenia and friendly with Ukraine.
    "All the strikers will be available," Mancini said on Friday when asked whether the 20-year-old Balotelli would feature in Sunday's Premier League home match against Sunderland.
    "I hope that after Dynamo Kiev his behaviour will be good. I think he wants to show he can change his behaviour in the last two months, because he lost also the national team for two games. It's not a good thing for a young player like Mario."
    City, who are fourth in the Premier League with 53 points and trail the leaders Manchester United by 10 points, are without three of their main defenders against Sunderland. Micah Richards has a hamstring problem, Jérôme Boateng a knee injury and Kolo Touré is suspended after a failed drug test.

 
England's Andy Carroll is not the first with a thirst for success

Lager is a young man's social lubricant and perhaps Andy Carroll will just grow out of it, before it can seep any further into his prized fast-twitch sinews



  • Andy-Carroll-007.jpg
    Andy Carrroll performed well for England against Ghana despite having only recently returned from injury. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty Images This has been an interesting week to follow the England football team, a week in which the usual feelings of hurt and bewilderment have been warmed by a spring&#8209;like breath of hope. Drinking in the sozzled aftermath of the intoxicating wrestle with Ghana, there were reasons to savour the morning after. Not least the fact Andy Carroll seems likely to be, if not the most important England player of the next decade, then perhaps the most tantalising and easily agonised over.
    This is not just for his undoubted skills, or because of the hunger within English football for his style of raging, snorting forward play. It's not a tactical thing either, as it has been with Peter Crouch, who for the past six years has offered England "that option". Crouch's fascination has always lain in his physique, which resembles in outline a deliberate and brutally pointed satire on the notion of a traditional English footballer, some hilariously wounding pastiche made out of blankets and broom handles and a balloon for a head intended to be incinerated in rowdy protest outside FA headquarters, which somehow ends up looking eerily indistinguishable from the real-life Couch.
    Carroll is different. At Wembley, still seeking low-gear fitness, at times he brought to mind not so much a young Alan Shearer as the old Alan Shearer, a single pummelling shooting boot, to be unpackaged and wheeled about the park like a rust-bound first world war field gun. But Carroll is a more versatile big man than this, "superb on the floor", as Steven Gerrard noted this week, and finessed in his touches. The issue with Carroll is instead physiological. It is to do with what football sometimes refers to as "intake". The issue, unbelievably, is lager.
    "He needs to improve, to drink less," was Fabio Capello's verdict after Carroll's first goal in midweek. This is the agony of Carroll, still so tender with greenhorn promise. Lager has already stained his path, a thirst that is a matter of public record: during the nightclub shemozzle that reached the courts last year it emerged that Carroll had drunk "eight or nine pints of lager" at the time of the incident. Lager! Muscle-rotting lager! All those terrible yellow toxins, wizening his knees, slackening his tendons, emaciating his calves. As was the case with Bryan Robson's shoulder, which popped its way dispiritingly through the late-1980s, sound-tracking the decade as clearly as any plunking Roland synthesiser, the temptation is now there to become wrapped up with Carroll's lager tally, to assume a condition of relentless ambient anxiety over the state of his ongoing lager thirst.
    Clearly this is an absurdity that could only exist in football. Imagine if this was a gymnast we were talking about, the tracksuited eminences sitting around muttering things like: "Well, Jeremy's got all the credentials to become world No1. Poise, technique, focus &#8211; if only he could stay off the lagers!" while some slack-bellied hulk in straining lycras flops his way around the parallel bars. Or musing over the mystery of Andy Murray's occasional concentration lapses while in the change-around chair Murray devours his customary foaming tankard of Hofmeister and signals urgently for a refill.
    The standard approach to football and booze is to shrug helplessly and point to a historical intertwining. Footballers have always drunk beer. Most clubs were founded out of pubs and breweries. In the 1960s Bobby Moore even starred in a TV advert for going to the pub ("Look in at the local!"). I spoke to a manager recently who said he could look at any player and tell you if they're a lager drinker (something about the complexion, the slackness of the skin).
    Still, there must be something more decisive to be done than simply hoping vaguely that Carroll can shed the thirst of his forebears. It might help to look into the very nature of lager itself. This is after all the most annihilating of drinks, a swarming tide of Total Drinking. When you're drinking lager there is only one thing that makes any sense: more lager. Plus it is an athletic catastrophe. There is no sensible lager food, no sustainable lager lifestyle. A lightly dressed salade Niçoise &#8211; plus a few pints of lager. This just isn't going to happen. Lager begets only lager, and a full raft of degenerative lager trimmings: the palette-sharpening lager-fag, the lager-hunger solace of the sodden kebab. Lager turns the world a single colour: lager colour.
    It is perhaps this all-consuming quality that has marked lager out as football's chosen drink. Perhaps in Carroll's lager thirst we should even find some hope. The rituals of social lager-drinking have always fitted football's group dynamic, or the dynamic of any randomly thrown together bunch of young men. With its all-consuming cycle of drink-piss-round-drink, lager provides pretty much a complete solution to the problem of having something talk about.
    Lager is a young man's social lubricant and perhaps Carroll will just grow out of it, before it can seep any further into his prized fast-twitch sinews. He is already cast against type: a surprising rendition of the tall, aggressive, neck-wrenching centre-forward, with his daintier skills, his aesthete's ponytail. There is no real reason to think he can't beat football's yellow peril, too.

 
Milan v Internazionale, 7.45pm Saturday 2 April

Milan v Inter will not settle tight title race but impact will be huge

With so little between the sides and the pack chasing, the derby will not be decisive but that makes it all the more fascinating



  • Paolo Bandini
  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 April 2011 14.08 BST <li class="history">Article history
    Zlatan-Ibrahimovic-scored-005.jpg
    Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored Milan's winner against Inter in November but is suspended for the return derby. Photograph: Giampiero Sposito/Reuters In the end it was Clarence Seedorf who broke ranks. "The derby is a decisive game because on a psychological level it means a great deal," announces the Milan player in Friday's Gazzetta dello Sport, apparently putting himself at odds with both his club's manager and vice-president. Massimiliano Allegri and Adriano Galliani have been at pains over the past few weeks to insist that, when it came to the Scudetto race, this weekend's Derby della Madonnina could absolutely not be termed as decisivo.
    It's really just a question of semantics, of course, as Seedorf goes on to add that defeat "would not be the end" of Milan's title dreams, but the fact that the question is being asked reflects how drastically the situation in Serie A has changed since the winter break. At the turn of the year Milan were 13 points clear of Internazionale, albeit having played two games more. Now that gap is down to two points. Win on Saturday and they knock Milan off the top of the table for the first time in five months.
    Recent history suggests we will have a winner on Saturday, too, as there has not been a draw in the past 14 editions of this fixture. The man who decided the last meeting, however, will not be present. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who won and dispatched the penalty when Milan won 1-0 in November, is suspended following a punch on Bari's Marco Rossi. Some may call it karma &#8211; Ibra was very lucky to stay on the pitch (though admittedly he was not the only one) in the last derby after a horrendous challenge on Marco Materazzi.
    There is no doubting that his absence is a huge blow to Milan. Ibrahimovic is not only the team's top scorer with 14 league goals but also their leading provider of assists. It is also true, however, that he had been in a poor run of form, scoring only once in his past nine club appearances and even then only from the penalty spot. In his absence Robinho is expected to start up front alongside Alexandre Pato. The pair have 21 goals between them but they too have struggled for goals in recent weeks.
    They will have their opportunities, though, against a weakened Inter defence. The Nerazzurri will be without both their first choice centre-halves &#8211; Walter Samuel is out for the season, and Lúcio suspended &#8211; and while both their likely replacements, Andrea Ranocchia and Christian Chivu, now look set to be fit, neither is likely to be 100% after recent injuries of their own.
    But goals at both ends have always seemed likely at Inter since Leonardo took over. In their first 15 league games of the season, under Rafael Benítez, Inter scored only 20 goals and conceded 14, on the way to collecting a modest 23 points. In the same number of games under Leonardo they have scored 36 and conceded 18 &#8211; their more open approach helping them to collect 37 points from a possible 45.
    Part of that is down to the players Leonardo has had available, too, of course, and as well as the new signings Ranocchia, Giampaolo Pazzini and Yuto Nagatomo, Leonardo will also have a fully fit Júlio César, Esteban Cambiasso, Thiago Motta and Maicon at his disposal. None of those four made it on to the pitch in the previous encounter. This meeting, too, could be defined by its absentees. Samuel Eto'o has expressed relief that "my friend Pippo Inzaghi" will not be available for Milan, while Andrea Pirlo may return for the Rossoneri but is unlikely to be fit enough to start.
    That, though, will not be the only source of intrigue on the sidelines. Leonardo, after all, will be coaching against Milan for the first time after more than a decade at the club in his various capacities as player, scout, manager and more. The manager acknowledged that he is likely to take plenty of flak from the crowd at San Siro, with Milan formally the home team, but denied being concerned. "For me football is fun," he said. "I am happy to live through this beautiful experience."
    Whether he will still feel the same way by the end of Saturday night remains to be seen, but if Inter do win their fans won't be the only ones celebrating. Third-placed Napoli are only one point behind Inter, and will host the Nerazzurri at the Stadio San Paolo in their penultimate game of the season. Fourth-placed Udinese, meanwhile, are two points further back and themselves face Milan on the final weekend. Their presence so close behind the two Milan clubs suggests that this one game cannot, indeed, be entirely decisive. But it certainly will be fascinating.

 
Milan v Internazionale, 7.45pm Saturday 2 April

Milan v Inter will not settle tight title race but impact will be huge

With so little between the sides and the pack chasing, the derby will not be decisive but that makes it all the more fascinating



  • Paolo Bandini
  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 April 2011 14.08 BST <li class="history">Article history
    Zlatan-Ibrahimovic-scored-005.jpg
    Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored Milan's winner against Inter in November but is suspended for the return derby. Photograph: Giampiero Sposito/Reuters In the end it was Clarence Seedorf who broke ranks. "The derby is a decisive game because on a psychological level it means a great deal," announces the Milan player in Friday's Gazzetta dello Sport, apparently putting himself at odds with both his club's manager and vice-president. Massimiliano Allegri and Adriano Galliani have been at pains over the past few weeks to insist that, when it came to the Scudetto race, this weekend's Derby della Madonnina could absolutely not be termed as decisivo.
    It's really just a question of semantics, of course, as Seedorf goes on to add that defeat "would not be the end" of Milan's title dreams, but the fact that the question is being asked reflects how drastically the situation in Serie A has changed since the winter break. At the turn of the year Milan were 13 points clear of Internazionale, albeit having played two games more. Now that gap is down to two points. Win on Saturday and they knock Milan off the top of the table for the first time in five months.
    Recent history suggests we will have a winner on Saturday, too, as there has not been a draw in the past 14 editions of this fixture. The man who decided the last meeting, however, will not be present. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who won and dispatched the penalty when Milan won 1-0 in November, is suspended following a punch on Bari's Marco Rossi. Some may call it karma – Ibra was very lucky to stay on the pitch (though admittedly he was not the only one) in the last derby after a horrendous challenge on Marco Materazzi.
    There is no doubting that his absence is a huge blow to Milan. Ibrahimovic is not only the team's top scorer with 14 league goals but also their leading provider of assists. It is also true, however, that he had been in a poor run of form, scoring only once in his past nine club appearances and even then only from the penalty spot. In his absence Robinho is expected to start up front alongside Alexandre Pato. The pair have 21 goals between them but they too have struggled for goals in recent weeks.
    They will have their opportunities, though, against a weakened Inter defence. The Nerazzurri will be without both their first choice centre-halves – Walter Samuel is out for the season, and Lúcio suspended – and while both their likely replacements, Andrea Ranocchia and Christian Chivu, now look set to be fit, neither is likely to be 100% after recent injuries of their own.
    But goals at both ends have always seemed likely at Inter since Leonardo took over. In their first 15 league games of the season, under Rafael Benítez, Inter scored only 20 goals and conceded 14, on the way to collecting a modest 23 points. In the same number of games under Leonardo they have scored 36 and conceded 18 – their more open approach helping them to collect 37 points from a possible 45.
    Part of that is down to the players Leonardo has had available, too, of course, and as well as the new signings Ranocchia, Giampaolo Pazzini and Yuto Nagatomo, Leonardo will also have a fully fit Júlio César, Esteban Cambiasso, Thiago Motta and Maicon at his disposal. None of those four made it on to the pitch in the previous encounter. This meeting, too, could be defined by its absentees. Samuel Eto'o has expressed relief that "my friend Pippo Inzaghi" will not be available for Milan, while Andrea Pirlo may return for the Rossoneri but is unlikely to be fit enough to start.
    That, though, will not be the only source of intrigue on the sidelines. Leonardo, after all, will be coaching against Milan for the first time after more than a decade at the club in his various capacities as player, scout, manager and more. The manager acknowledged that he is likely to take plenty of flak from the crowd at San Siro, with Milan formally the home team, but denied being concerned. "For me football is fun," he said. "I am happy to live through this beautiful experience."
    Whether he will still feel the same way by the end of Saturday night remains to be seen, but if Inter do win their fans won't be the only ones celebrating. Third-placed Napoli are only one point behind Inter, and will host the Nerazzurri at the Stadio San Paolo in their penultimate game of the season. Fourth-placed Udinese, meanwhile, are two points further back and themselves face Milan on the final weekend. Their presence so close behind the two Milan clubs suggests that this one game cannot, indeed, be entirely decisive. But it certainly will be fascinating.
 
Simba, Mazembe mtifuano wa karne Send to a friend Saturday, 02 April 2011 10:32

simba-anaunguruma.jpg
Clara Alphonce
VITA ya Daudi na Goliati ndivyo unavyoweza kuuzungumzia mchezo wa kesho wa Ligi ya Mabingwa baina ya Simba dhidi ya mabingwa mara mbili wa Ligi ya Mabingwa Afrika, TP Mazembe.Mchezo huo wa marudiano utakaochezwa kwenye Uwanja wa Taifa majira saa 9.30 Alasiri umekuwa gumzo kubwa baada ya Simba kufanikiwa kupata bao la ugenini walipokubali kipigo cha mabao 3-1 jijini Lubumbashi wiki mbili zilizopita.

Akiuzungumzia mchezo huo kocha Mzambia, Patrick Phiri aliyeiongoza Simba kutwaa ubingwa bila ya kupoteza mchezo wowote msimu ulipita amesema kuwa kikosi chake kitakuwa na mabadiliko makubwa na kila kilichocheza mchezo wa kwanza.

"Baadhi ya wachezaji wameumia akiwemo Amir Kiemba aliyeanza kwenye mchezo uliopita hivyo nategemea kufanya mabadiliko mengi pamoja na mbinu za uchezaji wetu."Phiri alisema TP Mazembe wanafungika, lakini kikubwa ni ushirikiano baina ya wachezaji pamoja na mashabiki kujitokeza kwa wingi kuishingilia timu yao kwa nguvu katika dakika zote.

Nahodha wa Simba, Mussa Hassan Mgosi alisema kwa upande wa wachezaji wamejiandaa vizuri na wako tayari kwa mchezo huo.Alisema anawataka wachezaji wenzake kuakikisha wanajitolea zaidi kuakikisha ushindi unapatikana nyumbani kwani watakuwa wanasapoti kubwa kutoka kwa Watanzania.

Naye kocha wa TP Mazembe, Lamine N'Diaye amesema wachezaji wake wamechoka kufutia kucheza wastani wa mechi 72, katikati wiki 52 za msimu kwa miaka mitatu mfululizo.

Hali ilikuwa mbaya mwaka jana baada ya kufuzu kwa fainali ya Kombe la Dunia la Klabu la Fifa kwa kuziondoa mabingwa wa Asia, Pachuca, miamba ya Marekani Kusini, Internacionale kabla ya kufungwa na Inter Milan, jambo lililowafanya waongeze idadi ya mechi zao msimu huomwaka jana.

"Sijawafanya wachoke," alisema N'Diaye mshambuliaji wa zamani wa Senegal aliyeiongoza timu hiyo ya DR Congo kutwaa ubingwa wa Afrika kwa mara ya pili , CAF Super Cup na kupoteza taji kwenye fainali ya Kombe la Dunia la Klabu la Fifa.

"Nimeona jinsi timu ilivyopata tabu tulipocheza dhidi ya Simba hicho ndio kitu kilichokiona. Hawakuwa kwenye kiwango kile wanachotakiwa kuwa. Nilitaka wafunge mabao mengi bila ya kuruhusu bao. Lakini tumeruhusu bao jambo lililotuweka kwenye mazingira magumu kwenye mchezo huu wa marudiano."

Kikosi cha N'Diaye kimechangia wachezaji tisa wa timu ya taifa ya DR Congo waliocheza fainali za Mataifa ya Afika CHAN nchini Sudan.
Wiki iliyopita sehemu kubwa ya wachezaji wake walitumika kwenye mechi za kufuzu kwa fainali za Mataifa 2012, DR Congo ilichukuwa wachezaji nane kwa ajili ya mchezo wao dhidi ya Mauritius ambao ni Robert Kidiaba, Dioko Kaluyituka, Badu Mbenza, Kasusula, Kimwaki Theophile Mihayo, Nyota wa Mali, Cheik Toure na wachezaji wawili wa Zimbabwe, Mthulisi Maphosa na Darrly Nyandoro walitumika kwenye vikosi vyao.

Pia nyota sita kutoka Zambia - Kalilou Kakonje, Emmanuel Mbola, Hichane Himonde, Sunzu Stopila, Rainford Kalaba na Given Singuluma wote waliitwa kwenye kikosi cha Chipolopolo kwa ajili ya mchezo wa dhidi ya Msumbiji.
YANGA WAVAA JEZI YA MAZEMBE
Mkataba wa kutoshambuliana baina ya Yanga na Simba hautekelezeki baada ya mashabiki wanaodaiwa kuwa wa vijana hao wa Jangwani kuzimbilia kwa nguvu jezi za TP Mazembe tangu mwishoni mwa wiki.

Mwanzoni mwa msimu viongozi wa timu hiyo waliingia mkataba wa kushirikiana na kuwataka mashabiki kuacha kizomea moja ya timu itapokuwa ikicheza mechi za kimataifa hapa nchini, lakini mashabiki wa Simba uzalendo uliwashinda na kuwa wa kwanza kuvunja umoja huo kwa kuishangilia Dedebit ya Ethiopia.

Kufutia kitendo hicho mahasimu wao Yanga wameanza maandalizi ya kuwazomea Simba kwa kununua jezi za TP Mazembe ambazo zimeoneka kuwa dili kwa wale wanaofanya biashara za jezi hapa nchini.

Uuzwaji wa jezi hizo ulianza toka siku mbili kabla ya mchezo wa awali wa Simba na TP Mazembe kwa kasi ndogo, lakini zilikuja kupata soko zaidi katika mechi ya Taifa Stars na Afrika ya Kati na mchezo wa Yanga na Azam ambapo mashabiki wengi walionekana kugombania jezi hizo.

Pamoja na shamlashamla hizo za mashabiki wa Yanga, lakini mpaka jana jioni kulikuwa hakuna taarifa kamili ya muda ambao mabingwa hao wa Afrika watawasili jijini hapa kwani awali ilikuwa jana Asubuhi saa 5.00 na baadaye saa 12.00 jioni huku taarifa nyingine ikisema leo.
 
Ngumi watupa karata leo Send to a friend Saturday, 02 April 2011 10:21

Imani Makongoro
KIBARUA cha kwanza cha mabondia wa timu ya taifa ya ngumi za ridhaa kuonyesha makali yao kimataifa kitaanza leo jijini Kampala Uganda katika mashindano ya Majiji yaliyoanza jana kwenye Uwanja wa Ndani wa Taifa nchini humo.

Mabondia sita wa Tanzania watashuka ulingoni leo ikiwa ni michezo yao ya kwanza ya kimatafa tangu walipoteuliwa kuunda timu taifa katikati ya mwezi uliopita.Kocha Pimentel Hurtado aliiambia Mwananchi kuwa wamewasili nchini humo jana siku ya ufunguzi wa mashindano hayo na kuomba mabondia wake kupangiwa kucheza leo ili kuondoa uchovu kwani wamesafiri na basi.

Hurtado alisema kuwa hawezi kutabili kama mabondia hao watafanya vizuri ama watapigwa kwani tangu kuchaguliwa kwa timu hiyo hajawai kuwafundisha hata siku moja zaidi ya kuwaona katika mashindano ya taifa.
"Sina hakika kama tutashinda ama tutashindwa haya ni mashindano na lolote linaweza kutokea, naamini kambi ya mabondia hawa ambayo ilikuwa ya wazi kabla ya kuja Uganda itakuwa na manufaa na hatimaye mabondia kutwaa ubingwa ingawa mabondia tutakaocheza nao ni wazuri pia wanahitaji kushinda," alisema Hurtado.

Mabondia hao ni kati ya mabondia ishirini wa timu ya taifa waliochaguliwa kulitumikia taifa katika masumbwi, licha ya mabondia hao kuwa katika timu ya taifa mazoezi yao yamekuwa duni hali inayotia wasiwasi juu ya maandalizi yao katika mashindano ya kimataifa kwani dawa, vifaa, daktari, maji na chakula katika mazoezi yao yaliyofanyika Uwanja wa Ndani wa Taifa ilikuwa ni shida hali inayosababisha kujinunulia wenyewe ama viongozi wa shirikisho la mchezo huo kuchanga fedha zao na kusaidia moja kati ya huduma muhimu kwa mabondia hao.
 
Surgery success for Lyon star Bastos


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Updated Mar 28, 2011 11:47 AM ET
Lyon boss Claude Puel has confirmed that Michel Bastos has undergone a successful knee operation.
The Brazil international picked up the knock in a recent 2-0 victory over Sochaux and it quickly became apparent that he would require surgery.

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It was decided that he would be allowed to return home for medical assistance, with renowned specialist Edilson Thiele scheduled to carry out the procedure.
Bastos has now been under the knife and Lyon are happy that the problem has been resolved.
Puel believes the full-back could be back in contention for a first-team recall before the end of the season.
He said: "The surgery went smoothly and he has already started his rehabilitation.
"He will work on his recovery for four to five weeks and then he should be available again."
Lyon have also revealed that Argentine playmaker Cesar Delgado is poised for a return to action after shaking off a groin complaint.
 
Surgery success for Lyon star Bastos


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Updated Mar 28, 2011 11:47 AM ET
Lyon boss Claude Puel has confirmed that Michel Bastos has undergone a successful knee operation.
The Brazil international picked up the knock in a recent 2-0 victory over Sochaux and it quickly became apparent that he would require surgery.

The home of the best LIVE soccer and rugby awaits at FoxSoccer.tv -- don't miss a second of the action.

It was decided that he would be allowed to return home for medical assistance, with renowned specialist Edilson Thiele scheduled to carry out the procedure.
Bastos has now been under the knife and Lyon are happy that the problem has been resolved.
Puel believes the full-back could be back in contention for a first-team recall before the end of the season.
He said: "The surgery went smoothly and he has already started his rehabilitation.
"He will work on his recovery for four to five weeks and then he should be available again."
Lyon have also revealed that Argentine playmaker Cesar Delgado is poised for a return to action after shaking off a groin complaint.



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  • Report Abuse jschwaab
    • 3/28/2011 12:12:51 PM
    Michel my man..... Seek tougher competition somewhere... say Anfield!! We need a left back and you fit alot of the characteristics of the type of player we need. Liverpool over this summer is going to be an uplifting revelation. Be part of the movement, Anfield 2011-2012. YNWA
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Squad sheets: West Ham United v Manchester United




  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 April 2011 16.21 BST <li class="history">Article history Sir Alex Ferguson's record at Upton Park is passable but the Manchester United manager may associate the stadium with the death of title campaigns. His comment about already relegated West Ham's "obscene effort" in 1992 has entered folklore and so has his team's failure to win on the final day in 1995. United have shed points away from home this season and another two or three here might spark feelings of deja vu. The margins for error are tight for both clubs although West Ham are not playing like a relegation team. David Hytner
    Venue Upton Park, Saturday 12.45pm
    Tickets Sold out
    Last season West Ham 0 Manchester Utd 4
    Referee Lee Mason
    This season's matches 17 Y74, R3, 4.53 cards per game
    Odds West Ham 15-4 Manchester Utd 5-6 Draw 11-4
    West-Ham-001.jpg
    Probable starters in bold, contenders in light. Photograph: Graphic West Ham

    Subs from Boffin, Reid, Gabbidon, Spector, Faubert, Tomkins, Barrera, Boa Morte, Kovac, Cole, Sears, Hines, Piquionne, Keane
    Doubtful Piquionne (foot), Parker (calf, shoulder)
    Injured Kurucz (knee, Aug), Collison (knee, May), Stanislas (groin, May)
    Suspended None
    Form guide DWWDLW
    Disciplinary record Y51 R1
    Leading scorer Piquionne 6
    Manchester Utd

    Subs from Kuszczak, Gibson, Obertan, Anderson, Owen, Bébé, Park, Berbatov, Giggs
    Doubtful None
    Injured Lindegaard (knee, 23 Apr), Rafael (hamstring, 6 Apr), O'Shea (hamstring, 9 Apr), Ferdinand (calf, 9 Apr), Brown (calf, 9 Apr), Fletcher (virus, 9 Apr), Hargreaves (hamstring, 16 Apr)
    Suspended Scholes (last of two), Evans (first of three)
    Form guide WLLWWL
    Disciplinary record Y46 R3
    Leading scorer Berbatov 20
    Match pointers

    &#8226; West Ham have lost their last five league games against United without scoring a goal
    &#8226; If selected, Edwin van der Sar will be making the 600th league start of his career
    &#8226; A defeat for West Ham would be their 250th of all time in the Premier League
    &#8226; Javier Hernández has scored four headed goals from just five headed shots on target
    &#8226; Scott Parker has scored more league goals this season than in the last three combined
    &#8226; United have scored with 18% of their shots &#8211; the best conversion rate in the division

 
Cruzeiro close to Brandao loan deal


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Updated Mar 23, 2011 5:02 AM ET
RIO DE JANEIRO

Cruzeiro is close to completing the loan signing of Marseille striker Brandao.

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The Brazilian club announced on their website that the 31-year-old forward would return to his homeland on a temporary deal until the end of the year.
But a statement on OM's own site read: "OM indicate that no document has yet been signed concerning the eventual departure of Brandao to the Brazilian club.
"Marseille announces, however, that the two clubs are very close to finding an agreement."
 
Squad sheets: Arsenal v Blackburn Rovers




  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 April 2011 16.39 BST <li class="history">Article history Arsenal have taken a single victory from their past six matches in all competitions, but they have a chance to show that their situation can work to their advantage. Unlike their rivals they now have the league as their sole objective and players such as Cesc Fábregas and Theo Walcott are returning to fitness. Blackburn still have hope because Arsenal so often thwart themselves, but the form of Steve Kean's team is troubling. While their scoring record in away matches is their defensive record on the road is the worst in the division. Kevin McCarra
    Venue Emirates Stadium, Satuday 5.30pm
    Tickets Sold out
    Last season Arsenal 6 Blackburn 2
    Referee Phil Dowd
    This season's matches 23 Y91, R7, 4.26 cards per game
    Odds Arsenal 2-7 Blackburn 12-1 Draw 26-5
    Arsenal-001.jpg
    Probable starters in bold, contenders in light. Photograph: Graphic Arsenal

    Subs from Shea, Lehmann, Gibbs, Eboué, Miquel, Diaby, Rosicky, Walcott,
    Bendtner, Chamakh
    Doubtful None
    Injured Denílson (toe, 9 Apr), Ramsey (groin, 9 Apr), Djourou (shoulder, 23 Apr), Szczesny (finger, May), Fabianski (shoulder, Aug), Frimpong (knee, Aug), Vermaelen (achilles, Aug),
    Suspended None
    Form guide DDWWDW
    Disciplinary record Y50 R6
    Leading scorer Van Persie 11
    Blackburn

    Subs from Bunn, Dunn, Hanley, Kalinic, Pedersen, MB Diouf, Nzonzi, Benjani, Linganzi, Goulon, Rochina
    Doubtful None
    Injured Andrews (groin, 23 Apr), Grella (achilles, Aug)
    Suspended Givet (last of two)
    Form guide DLLDLL
    Disciplinary record Y51 R4
    Leading scorer Kalinic 5
    Match pointers

    &#8226; Arsenal have not lost at home to Blackburn since a 2-1 defeat in October 2002 when Edu scored for both sides and Garry Flitcroft was sent off
    &#8226; There have been 22 goals scored in the last five league meetings between these sides, but only five by Blackburn
    &#8226; Andrey Arshavin has scored in all three of his league starts against Blackburn
    &#8226; Blackburn won their first away game under Steve Kean but have lost five in a row since
    &#8226; Arsenal have conceded 52% of their goals from set pieces, the highest proportion of any team in the division

 
Rangers rocked by Bougherra blow


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Updated Mar 29, 2011 10:14 AM ET
Rangers defender Madjid Bougherra has been ruled out for two to three weeks with a hamstring injury and admits: "It's worse than I feared."
Bougherra is set to miss matches with Dundee United, St Johnstone and Hamilton with the problem suffered in the Co-operative Insurance Cup final win over Celtic.

The home of the best LIVE soccer and rugby awaits at FoxSoccer.tv -- don't miss a second of the action.

Bougherra said in the Glasgow Evening Times: "I have had a scan and I've been told I will be out for a couple of weeks. I hope to be back for the last couple of games before the split.
"It is a little worse than I feared. I had hoped to play for Algeria against Morocco, but it just wasn't possible.
"Now I just have to make sure I get over the injury and come back okay for the final games of the season."
With Kyle Bartley, the on-loan Arsenal defender, out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury and Kirk Broadfoot returning to fitness after a length absence, Gers boss Walter Smith is poised to turn to Steven Whittaker to play in central defence alongside David Weir.
 
Rangers beats Celtic to win League Cup in Scotland


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Updated Mar 20, 2011 3:02 PM ET
Rangers won the Scottish League Cup thanks to Nikica Jelavic's extra-time goal in a 2-1 victory over Glasgow rival Celtic at Hampden Park on Sunday.

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The Croatia striker slipped home a finish in the 98th minute to deliver manager Walter Smith another trophy in his final season at Ibrox.
Rangers had taken the lead in the 23rd when Steven Davis' shot from 20 meters crept in off the base of the post but Wales midfielder Joe Ledley equalized seven minutes later with a close-range header.
It was the first piece of silverware won in Scotland this season. Celtic and Rangers are also the top two teams in the Scottish Premier League.
 
Squad sheets: Birmingham City v Bolton Wanderers



  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 April 2011 17.26 BST <li class="history">Article history It is not so much the two wins from their past nine league games as the fact they have scored just 14 goals in their last 17 that lead many people to include Birmingham City among their predicted three to be relegated to the Championship. Bolton Wanderers themselves have hardly sparkled away from home this season, but Owen Coyle's team do not get beaten by sides in the bottom half of the table, and having won here in the FA Cup three weeks ago, a point will be the least of their expectations. Richard Rae
    Venue St Andrew's, Saturday 3pm
    Tickets £20-40 (0844 557 1875)
    Last season Birmingham 1 Bolton 2
    Referee Michael Oliver
    This season's matches 13 Y45, R2, 3.62 cards per game
    Odds Birmingham 6-4 Bolton 2-1 Draw 9-4
    Birmingham-001.jpg
    Probable starters in bold, contenders in light. Photograph: Graphic Birmingham

    Subs from Doyle, Martins, Jerome, Mutch, Murphy, Parnaby, Phillips, Derbyshire, Redmond, Fahey, Jiranek
    Doubtful Jiranek (toe)
    Injured McFadden (knee, May), Dann (hamstring, Aug)
    Suspended None
    Form guide LDLLWW
    Disciplinary record Y43 R1
    Leading scorers Gardner, Zigic 5
    Bolton

    Subs from Bogdan, Lainton, Alonso, Taylor, Rodrigo, Elmander, Klasnic, Blake, O'Halloran, Eaves
    Doubtful None
    Injured Ricketts (achilles, Aug), Holden (leg, Sep), M Davies (ankle, unknown), Davis (knee, unknown), Knight (knee, unknown)
    Suspended None
    Form guide LWDWLW
    Disciplinary record Y54 R4
    Leading scorer Elmander 9
    Match pointers

    &#8226; Birmingham have won just one of their last eight league games at home
    &#8226; Since Stuart Holden made his Premier League debut, Bolton have won 43% of their games with him in the side but only 21% without him
    &#8226; Jussi Jaaskelainen has made 620 appearances in his club career but only one of them has been as a substitute
    &#8226; Lee Chung-yong has scored a late winner for Bolton at St Andrew's in both 2009-10 and 2008-09
    &#8226; 54% of Birmingham's goals have come from set pieces, the biggest share in the division

 
Scottish Premier League Roundup, Mar. 19


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Updated Mar 19, 2011 4:32 PM ET
Rudi Skacel struck a dramatic late winner as Hearts beat St Mirren in the SPL while there were also victories for Dundee United and Kilmarnock.
Rudi Skacel struck a dramatic late winner as Hearts completed a stunning fightback against St Mirren to triumph 3-2 after twice going behind to a Michael Higdon double.
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The Czech slammed home a Craig Thomson corner in injury time just minutes after Ryan Stevenson had equalised.
Higdon gave the visitors a deserved half-time lead with a 15th-minute header to make up for an earlier miss but Skacel's dipping effort brought Hearts level in the 55th minute.
Stevenson then cancelled out Higdon's second before Skacel pounced in the box to seal Hearts' first win in four games.
Dundee United guaranteed a top-six place with a 1-0 victory over Inverness Caledonian Thistle.
The only goal of the match came two minutes before the break when Danny Swanson guided the ball home with a smart left-foot finish.
It was United's fifth game in 12 days but they showed no signs of tiredness against the Highlanders as they won five consecutive league games for the first time in 14 years.
Kilmarnock took a huge step towards securing a top-six place as they came from behind to beat Motherwell 3-1 with the help of a controversial penalty.
John Sutton slotted Motherwell into an early lead but Manuel Pascali headed an equaliser before winning a soft penalty when he fell under an aerial challenge from Gavin Gunning.
Jamie Hamill converted the 43rd-minute spot-kick and Killie dominated the second half after Liam Kelly headed home at the near post six minutes after the break.
The victory moved Kilmarnock eight points above Motherwell with just three games left until the SPL split.
Hamilton's home hoodoo continued as they failed to break the deadlock against St Johnstone, though they did move a point closer to safety.
Perth defender Danny Grainger struck the outside of the post with a free-kick in the first half before Saints keeper Peter Enckelman made a couple of fine saves from Ali Crawford and Flavio Paixao.
In the final moments, after the visitors had survived a couple of goal attempts, Accies defender Simon Mensing was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Chris Millar.
But although the match ended with the SPL's bottom side still looking for their first home league win of the season, they moved to within six points of second-bottom St Mirren, although the Paisley side have a game in hand.
 
Makocha waishauri TFF Send to a friend Saturday, 02 April 2011 10:18

Sweetbert Lukonge
KOCHA wa Toto Afrika ya jijini Mwanza, Choke Abeid pamoja na kocha wa JKT Ruvu, Charles Kilinda wamelitaka Shirikisho la Soka Tanzania (TFF) kuongeza umakini zaidi katika mechi za Ligi Kuu zilizobakia ili kukabiliana na mchezo mchafu wa ukiukwaji wa kanuni unaoweza kujitokeza.

Wakizungumza na Mwananchi jana makocha hao walisema sehemu ambayo TFF wanapaswa kuwa nayo makini ni michezo yote ya Ligi Kuu iliyobakia hasa mechi zinazozihusisha timu za Simba na Yanga ambazo kwa sasa zinapigania nafasi ya kwanza.

Makocha hao walisema TFF wasipokuwa makini kwa hilo kuna uwezekano mkubwa wa kufanyika kwa mambo machafu ya kununua mechi ukizingatia kwa sasa hakuna ushindani kwa timu zinazoshuka daraja.

"Namshukuru Mungu kwa kuiwezesha timu yetu kubakia Ligi Kuu kwani mpaka hapa tulipofikia hakuna tena wasiwasi wa kuporomoka kwa sababu timu zinazoshuka tayari zimeshajulikana,"alisema kocha Abeid.

Kocha huyo aliongeza kuwa, "Pamoja na hayo yote TFF kwa sasa wanatakiwa kuwa makini zaidi katika mechi zote zilizobakia hasa zile zinazozihusu Simba na Yanga ambazo zinapigana vikumbo kuwania Ubingwa kwani bila ya kufanya hivyo upo uwezekano mkubwa wa kufanyika kwa mambo machafu."

Naye kocha Charles Kilinda alisema michuano ya Ligi Kuu inapofikia hatua hii ya lala salama bila ya bingwa kujulikana, hufanyika mambo mengi machafu hivyo ni jukumu la TFF kuwa makini kwa hilo ili bingwa wa kweli aweze kupatikana bila ya udanganyifu.
Mpaka sasa timu za Simba na Yanga ambazo zinawania ubingwa wa Ligi Kuu kila moja imebakisha mechi mbili ili kumaliza ligi hiyo.Simba ambayo inaongoza ligi ikiwa na pointi 45 itapambana na JKT Ruvu pamoja na Majimaji ya Songea ambayo tayari imeshuka daraja wakati Yanga yenyewe itavaana na African Lyon pamoja na Toto Afrika ya jijini Mwanza.
 
Squad sheets: Everton v Aston Villa



  • guardian.co.uk, Friday 1 April 2011 18.04 BST <li class="history">Article history This is a huge game for the troubled Gérard Houllier and one that the Aston Villa manager needs to take at least a point from to gain some respite. Everton have improved of late but they have failed to beat Villa in nine Premier League games and will be missing their leading scorer Louis Saha through injury and have doubts about several other key players. Richard Dunne and James Collins are set to return to the centre of Villa's defence for the first time since they turned a team-building exercise into a drunken row. Stuart James
    Venue Goodison Park, Saturday 3pm
    Tickets £30-37 (0871 663 1878)
    Last season Everton 1 Aston Villa 1
    Referee Mike Jones
    This season's matches 20 Y68, R3, 3.55 cards per game
    Odds Everton 10-11 Aston Villa 18-5 Draw 13-5
    Everton-001.jpg
    Probable starters in bold, contenders in light. Photograph: Graphic Everton

    Subs from Mucha, Turner, Heitinga, Anichebe, Bilyaletdinov, Gueye, Baxter, Mustafi
    Doubtful Coleman (ankle), Rodwell (ankle), Cahill (foot), Baxter (hamstring)
    Injured Barkley (leg, Apr), Saha (ankle, May), Arteta (hamstring, May), Fellaini (ankle, May)
    Suspended None
    Form guide WDWWLW
    Disciplinary record Y39 R3
    Leading scorer Cahill 9
    Aston Villa

    Subs from Marshall, Petrov, Cuéllar, Baker, Heskey, Agbonlahor, Herd, Delph, Pires, Bradley
    Doubtful Walker (hip)
    Injured None
    Suspended Clark (last of two)
    Form guide LLWDDDL
    Disciplinary record Y57 R2
    Leading scorers Downing, A Young 6
    Match pointers

    &#8226; Villa have kept one clean sheet in their last 20 Premier League matches
    &#8226; Everton have not won any of their last nine league meetings with Villa
    &#8226; Ashley Young has been awarded more free-kicks than any other player in the division
    &#8226; Everton have not kept a clean sheet against Villa since February 2004 &#8211; a run of 14 league and cup games
    &#8226; Darren Bent has been caught offside the most times (43) in the top flight
    &#8226; A draw would be the 50th of all time in league football between these clubs

 
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